But the last-ditch effort was basically laughed at. Secretary of State John Merrill said that Moore’s action ‘is not going to delay certification and Doug Jones … will be sworn in by Vice President Pence on the third of January’.

And Jones’ spokesman added: ‘The election is over. It’s time to move on.’

Jones, an attorney, used his own history prosecuting KKK members to mobilize support in the black community.

Jones managed to pull of a victory in Alabama on Tuesday (Picture: AP Photo/John Bazemore)

The 63-year-old grew up in the working-class city of Fairfield, just west of Birmingham. His father was a steelworker and so was one of his grandfathers.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Now an attorney in private practice, Jones lives just a few miles from his hometown in the hilly suburb of Mountain Brook, Alabama’s richest locale with an average family income estimated by the US Census Bureau at $225,000 annually.

Jones got his start in government as an aide to the last Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate from Alabama, the late Howell Heflin.

After graduating from Samford University’s law school in 1979, Jones worked as staff counsel to the Judiciary Committee for Heflin, and Jones still considers Heflin a role model.

What is Moore accused of?

Moore allegedly made inappropriate advances and had sexual contact with a woman when she was 14.

The Moore campaign called the news — first reported by The Washington Post — ‘the very definition of fake news and intentional defamation’.

The incidents are reported to have taken place when Moore, the 70-year-old former state Supreme Court judge, was serving as an assistant district attorney in his early 30s, according to the Post.

Moore, then 32, first approached 14-year-old Leigh Corfman in early 1979 outside a courtroom in Etowah county, Alabama, it is reported.

After phone calls and meetings, he drove her to his home some days later and kissed her, the Post quotes Corfman as saying. On a second visit, he took off her shirt and pants and removed his clothes except for his underwear before touching her over her bra and underpants, Corfman told the Post. He also guided her hand to touch him over his underwear, she said.

‘I wanted it over with – I wanted out,’ she told the Post. ‘Please just get this over with. Whatever this is, just get it over.’

Senior Republicans swiftly called for Moore to step aside if the allegations are shown to be true.

‘If these allegations are found to be true, Roy Moore must drop out of the Alabama special Senate election.’

The Moore campaign’s statement said: ‘Judge Roy Moore has endured the most outlandish attacks on any candidate in the modern political arena, but this story in today’s Washington Post alleging sexual impropriety takes the cake.

‘After over 40 years of public service, if any of these allegations were true, they would have been made public long before now.’